Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) Short Interest Up 18.5% in January

Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,160,000 shares, an increase of 18.5% from the December 31st total of 3,510,000 shares. Currently, 12.9% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,260,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Papa Johns International Stock Down 2.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ PZZA traded down $1.11 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $38.05. The company had a trading volume of 1,115,458 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,475,788. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.19. Papa Johns International has a 1-year low of $35.28 and a 1-year high of $76.91. The firm's 50 day moving average is $41.35 and its 200-day moving average is $46.32.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $506.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $497.28 million. Papa Johns International had a negative return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 4.51%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.53 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Papa Johns International will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Papa Johns International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. Papa Johns International's dividend payout ratio is 64.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PZZA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America upped their price target on Papa Johns International from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Papa Johns International from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Papa Johns International in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. KeyCorp cut Papa Johns International from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Papa Johns International from $56.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $55.83.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Papa Johns International

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Papa Johns International by 66.9% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 646 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its position in Papa Johns International by 27.5% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,690 shares of the company's stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 365 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its position in Papa Johns International by 300.0% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 600 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 450 shares during the period. Atlas Brown Inc. increased its position in Papa Johns International by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 10,453 shares of the company's stock worth $429,000 after buying an additional 546 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in Papa Johns International by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,639 shares of the company's stock worth $273,000 after buying an additional 551 shares during the period.

About Papa Johns International

Papa John's International, Inc engages in the operation and franchise of pizza delivery and carryout restaurants. It operates through the following segments: Domestic Company-owned Restaurants, North America Franchising, North America Commissaries, International Operations, and All Others. The Domestic Company-Owned Restaurants segment consists of retail sales of pizza and side items, breadsticks, cheese sticks, chicken poppers and wings, dessert items, and canned and bottled beverages.